Buy a car online

Whenever you build a deal on Auto Trader, we provide a free vehicle check to give you peace of mind before you decide to buy.

A vehicle check is a document that shows the history of a vehicle. It includes information like:

• The number of previous owners
• The date of first registration
• Mileage details

This information is gathered from various sources, including police databases, the DVLA, insurance companies and finance houses.

Vehicle checks are valuable because they ensure the vehicle matches its description and that there are no issues that you should be aware of.

Our vehicle check aims to ensure that all the data supplied to you is accurate. However, it is possible that some information may be out-of-date or incorrect.

Once you've confirmed the VIN, we'll activate your data guarantee. This covers you against any losses if the data in your vehicle history check is incorrect or incomplete. You'll be covered up to £30,000, or the purchase price of the vehicle (whichever is lower), for two years.

So say, for example, the vehicle has an outstanding finance agreement that isn't flagged in the vehicle check. Our data guarantee would cover the cost of finance repayment (up to £30,000) to make sure that the vehicle legally belongs to you.

Once you have decided to buy a vehicle, you should check the Terms and Conditions to make sure that you qualify for the guarantee.

For full details of the vehicle data guarantee, please read Section 9 of the Terms and Conditions.

View Terms and Conditions

Where home delivery is available, you’ll see our ‘home delivery’ icon on the advert.

You’ll typically arrange the delivery date and time with the dealership. Note some dealerships may charge extra for home delivery, so check before you commit. When the car arrives, give it a proper inspection before you sign and make sure the car is as described.

You may be able to arrange a test drive with the dealership before you buy, check with them to confirm.

If the car is delivered, and you never got chance to see it, then you should be covered by the Consumer Contracts Regulations – which give you the right to cancel or return your vehicle within 14 days.

You are protected by UK law and regulations, which we cover in our top-level guide to your rights.

Check free, impartial sites like Citizen’s Advice or the Money Advice Service for full guidance on your rights should you need to return a car or make a refund.

We’d advise you to follow the same safety precautions when shopping online as you do in person. Do your research into the vehicle and the seller, check the documents, and get a vehicle history check.

When doing anything online, you should keep your computer and security software up to date, use strong passwords and check twice if anything looks too good to be true.

Visit our safety and security centre for more.